Paint turns pink in icy conditions

(2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5)

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In an effort to reduce the amount of ice-related traffic accidents, researchers at French company Eurovia have developed a special paint that can turn itself pink to warn drivers of the hazardous road condition. Made from a polymer containing a thermochromic pigment, the paint is temperature sensitive but this isn’t exactly a new technology; the same polymer has been used in the frozen food industry.

In the image above, the white (colorless) represents temperatures above 2 degree Celsius. It turns pink once the temperature drops below 1 degree. The next step for researchers is to improve visibility during the night.

“We have been proud to test this new coating, whose purpose is to make our roads safer,” Devanne told New Scientist.

“Our first on-site tests have produced some encouraging results – the coating is resistant to harsh weather conditions and is mechanically resistant too,” he says. “However, we have still have some work ahead of us to optimize the final product.”

But, is this really necessary? I don’t need some special paint to tell me how cold it is outside. If I see snow falling, or snow on (or on the side) of the road, it’s pretty obvious that I should probably slow down. I have a better idea. Why don’t they invent special a special gravel mix that isn’t susceptible to ice formations, that way, we don’t have to worry about slippery roads.